The Nation Newspaper

Tag: IGP

  • Save Our Soul to IGP Arase

    SIR: I write on behalf of the retrenched officers of the Oyo State command of the Nigeria Police. We were retrenched on the ground of age in January 2007 during the regime of ex-president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo and former Inspector General of Police, Sunday Ehindero. The retrenchment cut across all federal parastatals, and paramilitary organizations.

    Then, the Federal Government ordered payment of entitlements to every affected person in the exercise. This was duly observed in every parastatal and paramilitary organization – excluding the Nigeria Police. The reason given by the authorities of the Nigeria Police was that the affected would be soon be called back to service.

    Between 2008 and 2010, few officers (rank and file) were called back to service while the rest were left out because they had no godfathers.

    When all our hopes to be called back to service throughout 2010 to 2012 became fruitless, we decided to pursue our entitlements, so that our service for years would not be zero.

    In May2014, a signal came from the Police headquarters Abuja to state headquarters that we should submit all necessary documents including our bank account numbers and pay slips to facilitate the payment of our entitlements. We complied with the instructions and were assured of payment into our various bank accounts before the end of year 2014.

    To our dismay, we have not received anything and not even heard about the payment till date.

    We are appealing to the Federal Government and the National Assembly to call on the Police authority, to release our entitlements even though some of our colleagues have died while waiting.

     

    • Adebiyi Ayoade,
  • Inauguration: IGP orders AIGs, CPs to beef up security

    Inauguration: IGP orders AIGs, CPs to beef up security

    The Inspector-General of Police, Mr Solomon Arase, has ordered commanding officers to beef up security around key and vulnerable installations in their jurisdiction ahead of the May 29 inauguration.

    This is contained in a statement issued by the Police Spokesman, Mr Emmanuel Ojukwu, in Abuja on Thursday.

    The statement, specifically ordered Zonal AIGs and Commissioners of Police in states, to take steps to protect critical infrastructure like mega filling stations, major hotels, National/State Houses of Assembly, and Eagle Square.

    It stated that this was imperative to ward off possible plans by insurgents to carry out widespread violence and coordinated attacks on those installations and public places ahead of the May 29.

    According to the statement, the insurgents plan to undermining the Presidential/Governorship inauguration/ swearing-in ceremonies nationwide.
    It, however, stated that the police had perfected strategies to provide security to ensure a hitch-free ceremony.

    The statement advised the public to continue to collaborate with the police and other security agencies to stamp out crimes and terror.

  • Ugolor: Nov 5 for hearing in N5m non-compliance award against IGP

    The Court of Appeal, sitting in Benin, the Edo State capital, has fixed November 5 for hearing in a non-compliance case over a judgment it gave on May 6, 2013, ordering the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to pay N5 million judgment sum to an activist, Rev. David Ugolor.

    In the suit between the IGP, Police and the Attorney-General of the Federation (appellants/respondents) and Rev. David Ugolor (respondent/applicant), the lawyer to the respondent, Emmanuel Afolabi, prayed the court to  direct the appellants/respondents to “obey the order it made on May 6, 2013, directing the appellant/respondents to pay the judgment sum of N5,000,000.00 to the Deputy Chief Registrar of this court, who shall immediately deposit same into an interest-yielding account to abide by the outcome of the appeal filed by the appellants/respondents”.

    Afolabi said the application was filed on the following grounds:

    “The appellants have failed to obey the order of this court directing the appellants to pay the judgment sum of this court, who shall immediately deposit same into an interest-yielding account.

    “The order made on May 6, 2013 has not been obeyed till date, whereas the order has not been set aside by the appellate court.

    “The conduct of the appellants/respondents shows that the appellants/respondents have no respect for the lawful order made by the court.”

    Presiding judge, Justice P. M. Ekpe, supported by Justice H. A. Barka and Justice U. A. Ogakwu, fixed hearing in the matter for November 5.

    The Appellate Court awarded N5 million against the applicants/respondents for allegedly detaining Ugolor illegally over the murder of Comrade Olaitan Oyerinde, the former Principal Private Secretary to Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole, on May 4, 2012.

     

     

  • ‘IGP orders probe of village invasion’

    RESIDENTS of Gerigbe Village in Ikorodu Local Government area of Lagos State have urged Acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP) to look into the invasion of their land by some policemen and hoodlums.

    Their appeal followed another attack on the community last Thursday night by some policemen from the Force Criminal Investigation Bureau (FCIB), Abuja.

    In a petition, the community is alleging that five residents were arrested and the home of High Chief Sanyaolu Aina was vandalised.

    A source said the police team claimed that it acted on orders from above, but the villagers are claiming that “the police deliberately led thugs, hoodlums and cultists to take over their land.”

    A landlord, Kayode Odunbitan, who is the Secretary of Gerigbe/Orelade royal family, alleged that the police team came with hoodlums, area boys and cult members about 10pm and sacked the village.

    Odunbitan said the police watched as hoodlums looted and raped women and “eventually took over the entire village.”

    He urged the IGP to ensure that the case is investigated and that those found wanting are brought to book.

    Meanwhile, following a petition by the Edem law firm, he alleged, the IGP has instructed his monitoring unit to investigate the matter.

    But High Chief Aina is claiming that despite the IGP’s orders, the attack on the village have not ceased.

    Strange people, he alleged, had been invading his home and his followers’ at odd hours, adding that suspected hired killers have also been trailing his vehicles.

  • Irish petitions IGP over police part in demolition of property

    Irish petitions IGP over police part in demolition of property

    •Petitioner angry over flouted court order

    The Irish national whose property was demolished at the weekend by officials of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), in alleged violation of a court order, has petitioned Acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP).

    The Irish accused the police of colluding with the FCDA to subvert a court order.

    A petition on his behalf by Chris Ezugwu of Ivory Chambers, Abuja, accused Chief Emeka Offor, the owner of Chrome Oil Services Limited, one of the parties in the suit before the court, of using the police and other security agencies to aid their disobedience of a court order.

    The petitioner said the court had stopped the demolition of the two property at Plot 4072, Maitama, Abuja.

    The petition, which was submitted to the Central Mail Collection Office at the Force Headquarters, Abuja, was copied to President Goodluck Jonathan, President-elect Muhammadu Buhari, the Chief Justice of the Federation and the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice.

    The Nation, in its Monday edition, reported the demolition of the property by officials of three agencies of the FCT – the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Abuja Metropolitan Management Agency (AMMA) and the Department of Development Control (DDC).

    They were allegedly aided by policemen, on Friday, to demolish two houses belonging to some non-Nigerians at Maitama.

    The FCT officials, allegedly instigated by Chrome Oil Services Limited, owned by a businessman, Emeka Offor, were said to have shunned entreaties by owners  of the structures, mostly Irish nationals, that the dispute between Chrome and Micad Project City Services Limited, in respect of the land on which the property were erected, was still pending in court.

    But in the petition to the acting IGP, Micad Project City Services Limited, through its lawyer, said while it was not unaware of the fact that the court had the capacity to deal with disobedience of court orders, it was the height of “rascality” for the police to refuse to prevent a clear violation of a court order, but rather actively assist in subverting it.

    The petition reads: “We write as counsel to Micad Project City Services Limited to protest in very strong terms the illegal and wanton use of men of the Nigeria Police by Chrome Oil Services Limited to carry out the barbaric demolition of our client’s property at Plot 4072 Maitama, Abuja, in flagrant violation of a subsisting order of injunction duly made by the High Court of Justice of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja.

    “On March 11, Chrome Oil Services Limited, accompanied by thugs, police, net and bulldozers invaded Plot 4072, Maitama and started the demolition of two massive commercial buildings built by our clients, Micad Project City Services Limited, purporting that the plot of land belongs to Chrome Oil Services Limited.

    “Left with no other civilised option, Micad Project City Services Limited instituted an action at the High Court of Justice of the Federal Capital Territory, …pursuant to which the court presided over by Hon. Justice Bello Kawu made an order and privies from further trespassing on the property and from carrying out any further demolition of the property pending the hearing and determination of the motion on notice for interlocutors injunction filed in the matter.

    “When the matter came up on April 20, the motion for interlocutory injunction was adjourned till May 11, on the mutual agreement of the parties, including Chrome Oil Services Limited and her counsel…

    “But a most bizarre and crude display of power and utter disregard of the court, Chrome Oil Services Limited on May 1, 2015, accompanied by a retinue of Mobile Police Unit 21, Nyanya, Abujaa no members of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) invaded Plot 4072, Maitama, Abuja, with bulldozers and resumed the demotion of the building therein even when the order of injunction is still subsisting and motion for interlocutors injunction is still pending.

    “All the entreaties by our client to the mobile policemen who concealed their identities with sweaters that they were being used to violate a subsisting order of court fell on deaf ear even after the court order was shown to them.

    “Curiously, the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Maitama Police station where the barbaric act was promptly reported decline to intervene in the matter on the ground that the police does not get involved in matters that are pending in court.

    “Yet, heavily armed policemen with full compliments of a police van and other security gadgets were stationed right inside plot 4072, Maitama, Abuja on 1st, 2nd and 3rd May, 2015 which were public holidays to supervise the illegal demolition of the property.

    “Even when the police were reminded of the consequences of their illegal mission, the boasted that nothing will happen to them even if they killed in the process because according to them, the Chairman of Chrome Oil Services Limited is connected to the highest level of government, the police high command and other security agencies.

    “While we concede that the issue or the flagrant disobedience of the order of court is for the court itself to deal with, it is the height of unacceptable rascality and impunity for the police, not only to refuse to act to prevent the clear violation of a court order, but indeed to participate actively in the subversion of a legitimate and subsisting order of court.

    “It is indeed a national shame that armed policemen operating with the full compliment of police official vehicles and gadgets would lend the name and integrity of the Nigeria a Police to this charade and the deliberate mockery of the courts simply because they have been compromised by a certain “big man” who they claim control the government, the police and other security a agencies.

    “We do not believe, Sir, that in engaging in the brazen subversion if the order of the court, these policemen were a tag with the lawful consent and authority of your office or any police formation for that matter.

    “While the property of our client may have re totally demolished by the time you receive this letter, we condemn the criminal complicity of the police in the circumstances and urge you, sir, to disallow in clear terms the further use or rather misuse of the Nigeria police by Chrome Oil Services Limited to intimidate our clients or occupy, or probably develop albeit illegally, the property situated at plot 4972, Maitama, A06, Abuja which is subject of litigation. Let the court be allowed to do its job”.

     

  • IGP briefs Jonathan on supplementary elections

    IGP briefs Jonathan on supplementary elections

    THE new Acting Inspector General of Police (IGP), Solomon Arase yesterday briefed President Goodluck Jonathan on security arrangements for states where governorship elections are conclusive.

    The states are Abia, Imo and Taraba states.

    Promising to provide level-playing ground for all parties and voters, he said troublemakers would not be spared during the elections.

    Speaking with State House correspondents, he said: “Well first and foremost, we still have some elections left in about three states and we are doing some massive deployment of man material and that is what I came to brief the C-in-C.

    “I can assure you that we are going to have a level-playing field for people who want to vote on election day.

    “For the deviant, like I said yesterday, they will be decisively dealt with.”

  • APC to Acting IGP: Shun partisanship; embrace professionalism

    APC to Acting IGP: Shun partisanship; embrace professionalism

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged the newly-appointed Acting Inspector-General of Police, Mr. Solomon Arase, to approach his new task with a high level of professionalism while shunning the kind of crass partisanship that has dragged key national institutions of state, especially the police, into the partisan fray.

    In a statement issued in Abuja on Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party advised the Acting IGP to learn from the fate that befell his predecessors who, under their watch, turned the police into the enforcement arm of the ruling party, thus allowing the institution to be wantonly used to thwart the will of the people and act in ways that negate its constitutional mandate of maintaining law and order.

    It said irrespective of the reasons for his appointment as the Acting IGP at this time, Mr. Arase must realize that he will be judged solely by the direction to which he takes the police, which is one of the most abused national institutions by those who have been at the helms of the nation’s affairs since the country’s return to democratic rule in 1999.

    ”We do not know the reason for the sack of the immediate past IGP, but we have read, just like other Nigerians, that it might not be unconnected with the role he either played or did not play in the last general elections. What we do know is that the police force under the former IG was a major actor in the massive rigging and violence that characterized the elections in some parts of the country, especially in Rivers ,Akwa Ibom Sokoto and Gombe states just to mention a few.

    ”Now, Mr. Arase faces perhaps the biggest test in his new capacity with the supplementary elections coming up in Abia, Imo and Taraba. We do hope he will not allow the police under him to be used to thwart the will of the people in those states or to give cover to those who will engage in violence. Any IGP worth his salt does not need to pander to the President or the ruling party in carrying out his duties. All he has to do is to make sure the police carries out its statutory duties in accordance with the law and without fear or favour,” APC said.

    The party said it does not believe the rumours making the rounds that the new Acting IGP was appointed to facilitate victory for the PDP in those supplementary elections, saying, in any case, that whatever may be the reason for his appointment, he should realize that Nigerians have now reached a level where they will not allow anyone, whether in uniform or not, to either prevent them from exercising their franchise or to collude with politicians to ensure that their votes do not count.

    ”When Mr. Arase’s predecessor issued an illegal order directing Nigerians to vote and immediately vacate polling units during the last elections, he knew he was acting against what the law stipulates, but he chose to do so anyway to please his masters. However, armed with the position of the law, Nigerians simply ignored the illegal order, voted and stayed behind to defend their votes.

    ”When that unlawful order is placed side-by-side with other acts that ran contrary to the maintenance of law and order under the immediate past IGP – including the cover given to the OPC to wreak havoc in Lagos, the illegal withdrawal of the security details of House of Representatives’ Speaker Aminu Tambuwal, whom he (former IGP) refused to recognize as Speaker in a clear usurpation of the role of the judiciary, and the shameful role of the police in the Osun Governorship election last year, during which hundreds of APC members were arrested and detained without cause – one will realize to what extent the police was dragged into partisan politics under him.

    ”But in the end, those for whom the IGP desecrated the police had no qualms about humiliating him out of office. We hope Mr. Arase will learn a lesson from this, toe a different path and not run the police like his private company and a tool in the hands of unscrupulous politicians,” it said.

  • Aprill 11 Polls: IGP redeploys 20 AIGs, CPs

    Aprill 11 Polls: IGP redeploys 20 AIGs, CPs

    • Special forces for Rivers

     

    The Inspector General of Police IGP Suleiman Abba has deployed Assistant Inspectors-General of Police and Commissioners of Police to supervise the gubernatorial and State Houses of Assembly elections in different states.

    This deployment is in addition to the deployment of six Deputy Inspector-General of Police to coordinate Police activities in the six geo-political zones.

    Also, due to the volatile nature of activities in Rivers, Special Forces have been deployed to oversee electoral activities in the State.

    This is contained in a statement Thursday by the Force Spokesman, Emmanuel Ojukwu.

    According to the statement, the 16 AIGs affected by the deployment are: “AIG Usman A. Gwary – Abia State, AIG Olufemi Adenaike – Kwara State, AIG Mbu J. Mbu – Ogun State, AIG Patrick Dey Dokumor – Kaduna State, AIG Tambari Y. Muhammed – Jigawa State, and AIG Mohammed Jinjiri Abubakar – Gombe State.

    Others are: “AIG Ikemefuna R. Okoye – Oyo State, AIG Tunde Ogunsakin – Rivers State, AIG Jubril O. Adeniji – Bauchi State, AIG Yerima Irimiya – Imo State, AIG Baba Adisa Bolanta – Akwa Ibom State, AIG Lawal Tanko – Lagos State, AIG Ballah M. Nasarawa – Benue State, AIG Musa Abdulsalam Daura – Edo State, AIG Aderele T. Shinaba – Plateau State and AIG Bala A. Hassan – Sokoto State.

    To ensure adequate security, four Commissioners of Police have also been deployed for election duties to the following States: CP Sam Okaula – Anambra State; CP E. J.  Ibine – Ekiti State;  CP Adamu Mohammed Enugu State; and  CP Valentine Ntomchukwu -Osun State.

    In addition to the officers, Abba also deployed Commissioners of Police to command each of the Senatorial Zones of these States; Gombe, Bauchi, Imo, Akwa Ibom, Lagos, Benue, Edo, Plateau and Sokoto.

    On the deployment to Rivers state, the following Special Units deployed are: “32 Units of Police Mobile Force (PMF), 4 Units of Counter terrorism Units (CTU), 4 Units of Special Protection Units (SPU) and 6 Crack Teams of Detectives from Force Criminal Investigation Department (FCID) and complements of Intelligence officers”.

  • IGP petitioned over illegal sale of Deeper Life Church’s land

    IGP petitioned over illegal sale of Deeper Life Church’s land

    THE Deeper Life Bible Church has urged the Inspector-General of Police Suleiman Abba to investigate the activities of land grabbers, who resold the church’s land and destroyed its fence with the alleged help of the police.

    The church said it acquired 34 hectares of land near Mowe Town from the Esuruosho, Ogunkayode, Oyebi and Shobowale (Shofidiya) families and made the necessary payments, including N750 million to Ogun State government for a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O).

    Due to incessant trespass on the land, it also obtained a court injunction barring land grabbers from entering the land.

    The church said a new generation of the land-owing families started demanding that the church must repurchase the land from them at N8 million per plot. When the demand was not met in 2009, its fence worth N10 million was pulled down by the land grabbers.

    While effort was being made to resolve the dispute, the church said the land grabbers continued to sell portions of the land to others.

    As a preservative step, the church began rebuilding the fence to demarcate the remainder of its land.

    The church said the families descendants brought some policemen to the church under the guise of inspecting the land in March, following which its new fence was again brought down.

    “By March 20, 2015, it became obvious that the above police-aided inspection was actually a tactical surveillance action to accurately guide the subsequent heartless destruction of the church’s fence by the land hustlers, their agents and thugs,” the church said.

    Besides, the church said the police had been harassing two of its members who were invited for questioning, asking them to make an undertaking that the church would not go into its land anymore.

    Deeper Life’s Senior Pastor Alfred Ogene, at a media briefing in Lagos, said the fence that was pulled down was 1,500 meters.

    “The fence they pulled down overnight is about N25 million. The one they pulled down in 2009 was about N10 million. They came and destroyed it at night. We have all the land’s documents. Deeper Life does not just acquire anybody’s land.

    “The families that sold the land to us, some of their heads are late. Their children are now saying that at the time their parents were selling the land to us, they were minors. They asked us to repurchase the land. We said no, that’s not possible, because we have the documents.

    “We have court judgments on the land affirming Deeper Life’s ownership. So, we’re legal occupiers of this land. Before you know it, they ran to the press saying the church took over their land,” Ogene said.

    The church’s legal counsel, Mr. Mojeed Tairu, said the church acquired the land legitimately. “

    This new generation of the land owners is not denying that the church has ownership and title over this land.

    “Their contention is that at the time the land was purchased by the church from their fathers and forefathers, they were mere toddlers and had no share of the ‘cake’. So, what does the church want to do for them?

    “They laid series of demands; for the church to make concession of a whole swath of land for them to be used as village extension project. Then they said we should have to repurchase the land at N8million.

    “At another fora, they asked for Owo Ilagbe (foundation money) for clearing of the bush. Notwithstanding the immorality of their demands, the church paid N10 million so that we can have some peace. They are taking advantage of our peaceful nature. It’s sheer, cheap blackmail.

    “All we tried to do in recent time is to make a demarcation of our remedial land so that they don’t take everything. But we’re asserting our right. We’re involving the police to keep the peace.

    “These ‘Omonile’ are criminal elements even though they have gained notoriety over the years because many people sleep over their rights. But there has to be a limit. We cannot continue like this. We have video recordings of where some of the family members were collecting money from the church.

    “They even went to court, but their case was struck out. Their lawyer wrote and did not challenge our ownership of the land. They are asking for Owo Ilagbe, Owo Foundation and Owo Iwoku. They’re all illegality,” Tairu said.

  • APGA chief petitions IGP

    Chieftain of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) in Anambra State, Dr. Ernest Obiejesi, has said he did not instruct anybody to shoot any policeman during the Presidential and National Assembly elections.

    He said two of the policemen attached to him were shot and injured on the election day and are hospitalised.

    The Nation learnt that two other policemen were killed in the fracas, which erupted at Ihiala Local Government.

    Obiejesi spoke yesterday at Okija in Ihiala council when over 2,000 people stormed the area, demanding to see their leader, who was rumoured to have also been killed.

    He denied attacking anybody, saying he was beaten up and his (security guards) policemen shot and injured.

    Obiejesi, an oil magnate, said he petitioned the inspector-general of Police, the Police commissioner and other security agents.

    “Some people wanted to kill me on the election day because we insisted that the right thing must be done. My vehicle was riddled with bullets and many people were injured.

    “Those involved wanted us to keep quiet so that they would perpetrate electoral fraud. But we refused, insisting that the people must rise up against fraud.

    “Nigeria is changing for good with the President-elect, Muhammadu Buhari, of the All Progressives Congress (APC). The wind of change has started blowing.”

    Obiejesi said youths were prevented from carrying out a reprisal.

    He said: “We will pursue the matter in a legal way because we are peace-loving people.”